Public Enemy #1??

I picked wild grapes this morning,  and thus am certain that I have gained the status of Public Enemy #1 in the eyes of our resident wild turkey flock. Mind you, I only picked the ones that were on vines growing up into the trees, and not the ones down low enough for the turkeys to eat, but I don’t think they comprehended that fine point. And of course picking the ones high in the trees really upset the local catbird, who “mewed” at me the entire time I was picking. Probably the only one happy with the situation was the young elm that was being strangled by the vines growing into it, as I pulled them out and cut them off in order to get at the grapes. A lot of work for what will make only 8 pints of grape jelly, but there are more grapes to pick once they have ripened. And I will once more do a gleaning at the local vineyard once their harvest is over, to get the different varieties of grapes. All of the ones that I have tried make wonderful jelly, and the jelly makes great gifts. Probably won’t make as much as I did last year (I lost count after the 500th jar), since the tasting room at the vineyard has closed there is no market there. And finally (after how many years?) it occurs to me to just can the juice for now and make the jelly this winter when my time is not as full and the extra heat in the kitchen will be welcome.

Close One Door, Open Several Others

What a see-saw several weeks it has been. Bill and I started out for Winter Park, Colorado on July 23, heading to the Alpine Art Affair and a chance to spend some time with our two youngest granddaughters. On the eastern edge of the Denver metro area, my much loved Mountaineer started missing and chugging, which warranted a quick exit and phone call to AAA for the closest mechanic. Alas, as luck would have it the mechanics were unable to get the problem to replicate, and as the saying goes, you can’t fix it if you don’t know what’s wrong. (I would recommend Jon’s Repair in the Brighton, CO area to anyone. They put aside their work to try and help a couple of stranded motorists, were honest about not being able to provide a true fix, and altogether left both of us feeling good about people in general.) Having ridden down from Berthoud Pass into Winter Park last year with no engine power (clogged fuel filter that time), we were not keen on the idea of doing that again, so turned the vehicle around and headed back to Nebraska. Major disappointment there! Alpine Art Affair is always a good show for me, and was the only one I had lined up for the year for a variety of reasons. Plus not getting to see the little ones, which was the worst blow of all. But, we made it home safely on the 24th, after spending the evening in Ft. Morgan with friends and then a restless night in a hotel. Still, I wanted to be in Winter Park….

On getting home, there was a letter from the Nebraska Arts Council with the news that I was one of 12 artists from across the state selected to have a solo show at the Governor’s Residence – there was a morale lifter! My show will hang Jan. 20 through Feb. 19, 2010, and I am excited to have the chance to pick my best pieces for display. Not so far away that I have time to get really nervous about the whole deal, but far enough that I can take my time and really plan it out.

After arriving home, I also put out a feeler to the Lincoln Arts Council, hoping that there was a chance I could still get into the Lincoln Arts Festival even though all the deadlines were months ago. Yesterday came the call that they had received a late cancellation, and after looking at my website were willing to offer me the space without need of going through the jury process. Morale booster #2! If you are in Lincoln, NE Sept. 26 or 27, stop on out at the Arts Festival at SouthPointe mall and look me up.

And finally, today upon arriving home after a long day at the gallery, the little magazine put out by the Rural Electric Assoc. in Nebraska was waiting for me, with a great article about my art written by Alan J. Bartels. Alan is a free-lance writer that did an article on me several years ago for one of the rural free magazines (Trade West); I knew he had been working on this article as he came out this spring for some photographs, but did not know when or if the article would be published. It’s a wonderful article, and Alan did his usual marvelous job. I’m going to end up having to hire him for a manager if he keeps managing to get me all this free publicity.

So. What started out to be a rotten end to the summer is turning into a series of new opportunities. Now I just need to capitalize on them. Wish me luck!